Controversy surrounding the Phoenix temple project is expected to draw 1,500 for a vote

Record crowds are expected to attend a meeting on Wednesday, when Phoenix City Council members will decide the fate of a controversial Mormon temple project. And city officials say they're prepared.

They've relocated the meeting from the City Hall council chambers to the adjacent Orpheum Theater, 203 W. Adams St., which can accommodate 1,323 people without violating city fire codes.

They're also setting up another 230 seats in the City Hall atrium where an overflow crowd will be able to listen in on the action. And loud speakers will broadcast the meeting in the courtyard just outside the theater.

"We're set up just fine for 99 percent of the issues, but occasionally there is something of this magnitude that requires some extra steps to ensure a fair and accessible process," City Clerk Mario Paniagua said.

At issue is the height of the temple, proposed for a 10-acre parcel at the northwest corner of 51st Avenue and Pinnacle Peak Road, just across from Glendale's Thunderbird Conservation Park.